Rock Star's Angel

by Lydia Cole

  “Lucy,” he said huskily.

  I smiled, finally getting what I was looking for. Hearing my name like that, full of desire, gave me goose bumps. I moved and took his hard cock in my mouth. He moaned loudly and I shivered at the pleasure behind the sound.

  I didn’t stay that way very long before Hayden completely lost it and threw me onto the bed, sliding into me with pure need in his eyes.

  My head rolled back and I screamed his name as an orgasm rolled through me. That wasn’t enough for him, though. He thrust into me, slowly at first. As he picked up speed, I held onto him for dear life. My body convulsed again, and he followed me that time, emptying into me with ecstasy written across his face. We laid there, breathing hard, for a few minutes.

  “I’m sorry,” I said after we situated.

  “Stop apologizing.”

  “I’m getting so good at it. It just comes out.” I chuckled and turned over to lay my head on his chest. “So, what am I supposed to tell everyone when they start questioning me about you?”

  He laid his lips on the top of my head. “Tell them that we’re madly in love and expecting twins at the end of the year.”

  I hit his chest lightly. “Seriously.”

  “Tell them whatever you want to tell them, babe. I can’t tell you what to do.” He ran his fingers down my back. “You sure you want to go back to the mansion?”

  “They’re expecting us.”

  “They expected us an hour ago,” he corrected. “And no one seems to be missing us.”

  I reached up and ran my hand through his hair absently, causing him to groan quietly. That brought all sort of emotions out of me, and I ended up straddling him with a wicked smile. “I guess we don’t have to go back just yet.”

  Hayden pulled me down to him with a strong hand on the back of my neck. “That’s what I like to hear.”

  It took another hour for us to leave the hotel.

  ***

  I called and reactivated Hayden’s debit card while he drove back to the mansion. “You have to admit, that was pretty funny.”

  “It was not funny,” he argued, face tight with irritation.

  “You’ll look back one day and agree with me.” I leaned into him and laid my head on his shoulder. “The porn star called me Lucy-Lu.”

  Hayden made a weird face. “Huh. What did you do?”

  I shrugged. “Nothing. But I still haven’t decided what I think about it.”

  “It’s a little perky for you.”

  “Yeah. Perky.” I sat up and looked at him. “Are you saying I’m not perky?”

  A smile spread across his face. “Babe, seriously. Would you like to be perky?”

  “I might.”

  He nodded. “Right.”

  We made it back to the house and wandered down into the basement. Everyone was messing around, playing random songs and laughing when someone messed up on something. Ben caught my eye with a questioning look, then smiled when Hayden followed me down the stairs.

  “Oh, Hayden, come see!” Tiffany waved him forward and pointed at the guitar. “Jack abandoned us.”

  I looked around the room and found that she wasn’t lying. Jack was gone. I frowned. “Where did he go?”

  “He said he had a date,” Billie said, a little suspicious.

  “Oh. Sure.” I rolled my eyes and grabbed the guitar before Hayden could, sticking my tongue out at him and pointing to my acoustic guitar sitting close by.

  He gave me a halfhearted glare and moved toward the other guitar. We played one of Johnny’s older ones, a couple of mine, then some Reluctant Angel songs. People were wandering out a few at a time, and eventually, all that was left was Hayden, Ben, Tiffany, and me.

  I had given the electric guitar to Hayden long ago and taken control of the microphone. Tiffany was walking Ben through a song she’d written, tapping on piano keys as she did.

  Hayden sat on a stool next to me, strumming a familiar tune and watching me with googly eyes. It was the one Johnny had written for Mom. The one I’d sang the first time I’d met the guys, at Maci’s wedding.

  “Not singing that tonight.”

  He frowned and stopped playing. “Come on, beautiful. For me?”

  I shook my head. “I’m too emotional tonight. I’m liable to start crying.”

  He nodded slowly, but went back to playing quietly on the guitar. “You should talk about her. Tell Johnny you want to talk about her. I’m sure he’d love to.”

  “I can’t.” I took a breath and turned around, catching Ben and Tiffany just as they leaned into a sweet kiss. I turned back to Hayden with wide eyes, lips between my teeth to hold back the smile.

  Hayden gave me a funny look, then peeked over my shoulder and smiled. “Puppy love,” he said quietly.

  “Puppy?”

  “She’s eighteen, Angel. He just turned twenty. They’re babies.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Come on. Let’s give them some privacy.” I yanked him up and pulled him up the stairs, heading straight for the kitchen.

  “Hungry?” Hayden asked, plopping onto a stool as he watched me.

  “Nope.” I grabbed strawberries from the fridge, then looked over the door until I found the chocolate syrup. Then, I headed for the stairs, not turning to look at him.

  “Holy shit,” Hayden breathed as he jumped off the stool and raced behind me.

  We spent a couple hours soaking in a hot bathtub, then moved to the bed. It was another long night. Another night of me contemplating if I was making a mistake. This time, though, I came up with a different answer. I could do this. I could just be with him now and be okay with it when we split up. I hoped so, anyway. I was quickly becoming addicted to Hayden Harris.

  “Hey,” Hayden moved over me, the early morning Sun shining through my window. “Stop thinking. I see that look in your eyes.”

  I smiled and put my hand on his face. “Make me stop thinking, lover boy.”

  ***

  If there was one thing I liked about Hayden, it was that he always followed directions. In bed, anyway. My mind didn’t work again until Monday. The second we got back to the studio, though, I was on. I wanted to finish my album and their album so we could get started on organizing our tour.

  I bit back a smile, toying with buttons and lights, as I thought about how much fun it would be on tour with them. And not just because I was planning on sneaking quickies with Hayden whenever and wherever possible. When I was with them, more than any other people I’d ever met in my life, I was comfortable. Just me. I didn’t have to pretend. I wasn’t Lucy Gold, famous rock star. I was just Lucy. And I really liked that.

  “Lucy-Lu,” Tiffany came into the recording room and sat in the chair I’d pushed away. “I need some advice.”

  “Now?” I asked quietly, trying to focus my already drifting mind on what I was doing.

  “Preferably.” She took a deep breath. “I think I like Ben.”

  “Okay.” I rolled my eyes slightly, then smiled when Hayden winked at me from behind the glass. “What’s the problem?”

  She fidgeted in the chair, then eventually got up and started pacing slowly.

  “Tiff, sit. They can see you, you know.”

  “Oh.” Her face went bright red and she fell into the seat, covering her embarrassment with her hands. “Poop.”

  I had to chuckle at that. The girl didn’t even curse. Really, I didn’t see us becoming best friends. I dropped the f-bomb on a regular basis. It was a conversation enhancer, I always said.

  “I…I’ve never…” She sighed and shook her head.

  The chuckle turned into a giggle. “What? You’re a virgin? Sweetheart, that’s not a surprise.”

  “No,” she said sharply.

  I turned with wide eyes to look at her.

  “Well, I mean, of course I am. But that’s not the problem. Well, sort of.” She scooted the chair so she was in the corner, behind the door, where the guys couldn’t see her. “I’ve never had a boyfriend. I don’t know what to do w
ith guys. I’ve never even had a guy friend. Tell me what to do. He seems to like you.”

  I pushed past the fact that she’d never had a boyfriend. That wasn’t much of a surprise, either. I even managed to look over the fact that her tone was a little sharp when she said Ben liked me. I knew he liked me. I noticed it the first day we’d met. But, we were friends and nothing more. The fact that she’d never had any guys friends was a little weird, though. I couldn’t imagine life without guys. I needed my guys.

  I smiled as the song ended and hit the button for the intercom. “Okay, kids. Take ten. Girl time.”

  Tiffany blushed uncontrollably as they filed out of the room, each giving her a wide smile. Ben’s cheeks were a little pink, too. I had a feeling neither of them needed any help. It looked like being themselves was working out just fine.

  Hayden pulled me into his waist with two strong hands on my hips. “When you say girl time, does that mean I have to disappear?” He asked quietly.

  “Do you have a vagina?”

  He chuckled, kissed me, and turned to leave. “No making out until I get back, ladies.”

  I rolled my eyes and looked at Tiffany, whose red cheeks had reached a whole new level. “Okay, look, Tiff. Yeah, Ben and I get along. Yes, guys love me. But that’s not something I can teach you. If you just do what I tell you to do, then he won’t like you. He’ll like your act. And trust me, that’s not a way you want to gain an admirer. You’re a cool chick. Just be yourself.”

  She rolled her eyes. “That is entirely unhelpful. And attracting him is not my problem. It’s…afterwards.”

  I scrunched my eyebrows in confusion.

  She stuttered a bit, but finally spit it out. “I kissed him at your house and it was amazing.” Her eyes went a little fuzzy, but she recovered quickly. “But what about when…you know…he wants…”

  “Oh, Tiffany.” I sighed and looked at her. I really didn’t know what to do with her sometimes. “Instinct takes over at some point. I’m willing to bet Ben’s not a virgin, anyway, so I’m sure he’ll be happy to show you around.”

  Her face flushed. “I’m too chicken to tell him he’s the first guy I’ve kissed,” she admitted in an almost whisper.

  My mouth fell open. Certainly, this girl didn’t make it all the way to eighteen with her amazing looks and never had a guy kiss her. That just didn’t make sense. I didn’t even know how to respond. “I…uh…guess I could talk to him for you.”

  She jerked her face up, eyes wide. “Really? You’d do that?”

  I shrugged. “Sure. Why not?” I took a breath and grabbed her arm, pulling her toward the kitchen. “Or, you know, you could always practice on me.” I turned and winked at her.

  Tiffany burst into laughter as we walked into the kitchen, catching the attention of everyone around. Her laugh was one of those happy, bubbly things that made me smile. If I didn’t like her, it probably would have made me want to hurl. But there was no point in trying to not like beautiful, friendly, sweet Tiffany. Lord knows I tried.

  We finished up two songs that afternoon. They guys only had one left to record. My album, on the other hand, was a bit behind. I’d pushed off two recording times in the past week because I was busy with the guys. I was beginning to feel neglected. So, I called in Johnny and we got to work on me.

  Chapter Twelve

  “Lu-Lu, what’s wrong?” Johnny sat back in the chair and eyed me after a few minutes of horrifying recording.

  “I don’t know.” I fell onto the stool behind me and chewed my nail. “I’m just not feeling it.”

  He took a breath and looked through the sheet music he had in front of him. “You want to take a break and try again?”

  “No.” I shook my head, bits of dark hair beating my eyes as I did. “I want to finish this.”

  “You have to want more than that.” He flicked the intercom off and motioned me out of the room.

  With a frown, I followed orders. “What?”

  “Go take a walk. Go do something. Just go. Maybe we should try again tomorrow.”

  I narrowed my eyes at him. “What the hell, Johnny? What happened to all the motivational words you have for all your other stars?”

  “Nothing works on you.” He shrugged and put down the papers, finally turning to look at me. “You’re not singing with passion, Lu-Lu. You’re just going through the motions. Until you’re ready to put some heart into it, we can’t finish this album.”

  I opened my mouth to yell at him, then thought it would be a better idea just to leave. I was getting really good at apologizing, but I didn’t want to make a habit out of it. I stormed out of the room and headed for the gardens. It was dark outside, well after dinner time, but I didn’t care. It was freezing, but I was too mad to be cold. I laid back on the stone bench and stared at the stars.

  After a few minutes, the anger was gone and the cold was making my teeth chatter. I stood up and headed toward the back door. I saw the flash out of the corner of my eye just as I was pulling the door open. In a moment of brilliance, I stuck my middle finger in the general direction of the photographer and received another flash in return.

  “That’s just great.” I shut the door hard and stomped down the hallway. “Just freaking great.” The bastards always got me at the right moment. It’s like they had a monitor to my mood.

  ***

  Hayden was sitting in Cindy’s chair, spinning around. He stopped when he saw me, smiling widely. “Johnny said you were cooling off.”

  I rolled my eyes. “He just told me I sucked and he didn’t want to record me.”

  “He did not tell you you sucked.” Hayden sighed and stood up, coming around the desk and pulling me to his hard, warm body. “Jesus, babe. You’re an icicle.”

  “It’s cold outside,” I said with a shrug.

  “You could have put on a jacket or something.” He rubbed his hands on my arms for friction, then stood back and directed me toward the front door. “What were you singing?”

  I cringed. “You don’t know it.”

  He turned and cocked an eyebrow at me as he opened the back door of the car that was waiting. “I’ve listened to you guys practice. I’ve seen most of your music and heard all of it.”

  “It’s a new one. The guys recorded the music the other day and I was just adding the vocals. I just wrote it last week.”

  “When?” He glanced over curiously. “Exactly when.”

  “Ugh,” I groaned, putting my face in my hands. “The night of my party. I snuck away from Jack and wrote it then. Why? Why the hell does it matter?”

  “Uh huh,” he rubbed his jaw thoughtfully. “And how were you feeling that night?”

  I closed my eyes and tried to fight back the combination of rage and despair. “Angry. Betrayed. Raw. Dumb.”

  “And how are you feeling now?”

  “Pretty shitty.”

  He smiled, then pulled me into his chest and laid a kiss on my head. “Let me rephrase that. How were you feeling when you were trying to record?”

  I sighed. “Actually, I was thinking about how awesome that last song went for you guys and I was going over the duet in my mind. I mean, I cleared my head before I stepped into the booth, like always.”

  He nodded. “I think you just need to admit to yourself that you’re happy. I believe that’s a novel concept for you, dear.”

  My initial reaction was to laugh, because I was sure he was joking. Then, I actually stopped and thought about it. I had spent the better part of a year being angry at the world. My heart was broken and that was my way of dealing. My music was angry. My attitude was awful. And, worse than that, my outlook on love was disgusting. Not much of that had changed, but it did make sense.

  I took a breath and sat up. “Hayden…”

  “What?” He leaned forward to look at me, confused.

  Either I was happy with him and horrible at my music, or I was miserable without him and won a few more Grammys. Suddenly, life sucked.

  “It’s you
r fault,” I turned to him with wide eyes. “It’s your fault I can’t sing.”

  “Oh, no. Don’t start that. You just need to be a better actress. Or record happier songs.”

  “That’s not me.” I shook my head and fell back into the seat. “This freaking sucks.”

  “Lucy,” Hayden knelt in front of me, taking my face in his hands. “Do not over think this. You were just having an off night. Tomorrow, I’ll do something horrible and piss you off and you can go back and record that song with all the passion in the world.”

  I wanted to believe him. I really did. The car stopped and I crawled out, pulling him behind me. “You’re sleeping with me tonight.”

  He chuckled softly. “Is that an order?”

  “Yes.” I threw him inside and locked the front door behind me. “Johnny?”

  “In here,” came a distant response.

  I walked toward the office in the back of the house, dragging Hayden along with me. When we made it into the door, I shoved Hayden in and pointed an accusatory finger at him. “It’s his fault.”

  Johnny looked at me with wide, scared eyes. “Are you pregnant?”

  My mouth dropped open. The room was silent for a split second, right until I fell into the big leather couch laughing.

  Hayden decided to answer that for me. “No, dude. We’re not stupid.”

  Johnny’s face had started to relax, but he tensed a little at Hayden. “Things can happen,” he snapped.

  I put my hand over my mouth and sat up. “He didn’t mean that, Johnny. We know you’re not stupid. You were very drunk that night, by all accounts I’ve heard.”

  Hayden was looking back and forth, panic in his eyes.

  “He knocked Mom up before he married her. I believe he took offense to that,” I explained, leaning back in the couch and finally letting myself relax.

  “Oh, Johnny. I didn’t know. I didn’t mean…”